PORT ST. LUCIE — Brandon Nimmo and Freddie Freeman have been “two peas in a pod” in the course of the NLCS final October. The Mets left fielder was battling plantar fasciitis whereas the Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman was nursing an injured ankle. Neither one in every of them may transfer very properly, one thing the World Sequence MVP famous when Nimmo reached first base throughout a sport within the collection.
“He was just like, ‘Hey, we’re two peas in a pod over here, neither of us can run,’” Nimmo stated Friday at Clover Park. “He was just having fun with it.”
Nimmo battled plantar fasciitis, a painful foot situation, for many of final season. He acquired therapy that helped alleviate the irritation and ache and was in a position to handle it for many of the 12 months, however he aggravated it once more in the course of the NLCS. Coming into spring coaching after a winter of therapy that included bodily remedy, smooth tissue work, a platelet wealthy plasma shot and relaxation, Nimmo is sort of again to regular.
He’s in a position to run once more, and he’s operating at 91% energy, to be exact. Sure, 91%. Nimmo is nothing if not particular.
“The organization, I feel like for a while now, has really done a good job with the medical staff, and so I’ve been able to be down here and be able to train and do PT and everything,” Nimmo stated. “And obviously, now being at 91%, I’m feeling really good about where we’re at and how much time we have before the season starts.”
The 31-year-old crew chief nonetheless managed to play in 151 video games, and regardless of the foot damage, has now logged three wholesome seasons, taking part in 151 in 2022 and career-high 152 in 2023. He credit the Mets medical workers and their funding in applied sciences that enable trainers to view vitality output ranges. The information helped the trainers put collectively a greater program for Nimmo, that took into consideration days off and pre- and postgame exercises. The Catapult trackers are how Nimmo obtained the 91% determine.
Though he’s been feeling regular for the previous couple of weeks, Nimmo sometimes doesn’t get into any Grapefruit League video games till early-to-mid March, and he plans to stay with that timeline this season. He acknowledges that his foot might not be totally healed by March, however so long as he retains progressing, he’ll be capable of play.
“You want to just keep stacking good days, you don’t want to have a step back,” he stated. “So as long as you’re able to just keep getting more load on it each and every day, do more and have the cuts and do the agility [training]. When you can build this up more, it’ll be able to be in a better spot coming game time.”
Regardless of the foot, Nimmo performed like an All-Star over the primary half of 2024, hitting .248 with 16 house runs, eight stolen bases and an .815 OPS. However then he fell right into a deep droop within the second half, together with his common sliding beneath .190. He turned it round in August, solely to droop once more in September. By the tip of the season, his on-base share was a career-low .327.
The low on-base clip was uncharacteristic for a participant who made a profession off of his eye on the plate. Nimmo stated he was pitched more durable after the All-Star break and didn’t make the modifications he wanted to make.
“Kind of made some bad adjustments, had a little bit of a nick on the thumb with a little nerve thing, just made a little bit of too much adjustment,” he stated. “It kind of ended up being a six-week hole that I kind of put myself in. If I would have just probably stayed the course, it would have been fine. So that’s a lesson learned.”
He nonetheless hit 23 house runs, just one fewer than what he hit in 2023. The Mets suppose a wholesome Nimmo may hit 30. If that’s the case, he may discover himself hitting cleanup as an alternative of upper within the order. There may be additionally a chance of Nimmo moving into the lineup as a delegated hitter now and again to maintain him wholesome, one thing the Mets have finished with him up to now. The crew at present has a glut of outfielders, with Tyrone Taylor, Jose Siri, Starling Marte and their crown jewel, Juan Soto. Jesse Winker can even play outfield.
Nimmo comes into camp with a brand new beard and a brand new child. His spouse Chelsea gave start to the couple’s first youngster in December, a daughter named Tatum. His objective this 12 months is to be “more well-rounded” on the sector, and as a father and husband.
Nimmo could be taking it sluggish this spring, but when meaning he could make up that final 9%, the Mets can be higher for it.
“I’ve got to be a good husband, I’ve got to be a good father, and then, I get to be, hopefully, a great baseball player after that,” he stated. “[Being a dad] is really fun, but I’m still learning. We’ll be learning every day, but she’s a joy.”
